1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device management apparatus, an information processing system, and an information processing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In corporate environments, devices such as multifunction peripherals and printers are sometimes replaced by new devices. In other words, previous devices are disposed and newly purchased devices are used instead. Techniques are known for detecting activities such as installation, movement, addition, change, or disposal (IMACD) performed with respect to devices and managing the devices accordingly (see e.g., Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2012-084124).
In recent years, electronic devices such as multifunction peripherals and printers are able to have their capabilities expanded by altering values of various settings or installing application programs, for example, to accommodate user operations.
When such electronic devices are replaced by new devices, users may wish to continue using the capabilities of the previous devices (i.e., devices to be replaced, also referred to as “pre-replacement devices” hereinafter) in the new devices (also referred to as “replacement devices” hereinafter). In such case, the users have to repeat the same setting and program installation operations performed with respect to the previous devices on the new devices. The need to perform such operations may impose a large burden on users, particularly those managing a large number of devices.
Also, there may be cases where a replacement device (new device) cannot assume (satisfy) all the functions of the pre-replacement device (previous device).
Thus, there is a demand for improving efficiency of setting operations to be performed with respect to a device.